Taking baby on anthem

[Juliecruzin]

I’ve been on several cruises but never with a baby. We’re considering booking next year on anthem out of Southampton when our baby will be 7 months.

 

looking for any tips from anyone that has taken a similar aged baby on board.

 

what type of equipment will royal provide - I’ve seen mentions of a pack and play (how comfy is the mattress?), are they able to provide anything else  - ie sterilisers  etc? If not are you allowed to take your own steriliser on board?

 

how did you find meals on board? We’ll only be a month into weaning so unsure yet if we’ll manage baby led or not. Can the dining rooms do puréed/mashed food if necessary and are there any baby food jars/pouches available on board?

 

any other tips greatly appreciated, will likely be our first full holiday so all the great unknown 

[firefly333]

I'm guessing they dont have sterilizers as I saw a thread where moms said they used hot shower water to warm up baby bottles in a ice tray. Bring your own soap to wash and sterilize.

 

Moms bring a blow up pool to wash baby. 

Edited November 22, 2023 by firefly333

[FionaMG]

I suggest you post your question on the family forum here:

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/28-family-cruises/

 

You'll find lots of helpful information over there from people who are or have been in a similar situation to your own.

[steve3791]

Hi @Juliecruzin!  Alot of great info on the family forum.  However we cruised on Oasis out of Florida with our 8 month old several years ago. Like you, we cruised many time prior to our child.  This cruise was very different than the past, but fantastic!  And the pictures we show our 10 year old now are priceless. 

This ship provided us with a pack and play which was in good condition and our daughter had no issues sleeping. We brought prepared baby food and formula on board, so didn't rely on the RCL food all that much.

 

Some tips:

- We brought some magnets and a black out curtains. So we set up a "separate" area for our daughter to sleep and nap...worked great!

- Going in we knew we couldn't do everything we wanted and had to adjust our schedules. i.e. we kept it simple and skipped specialty restaurants and kept to the main dining room and did MTD. Of course you can hit the nicer restaurants, but wasn't a need for us.

- We were able to do the later shows, as as daughter slept in the stroller during the shows. We sat / stood by the back of the theater.

 

Was this cruise as relaxing as prior to our daughter. Of course not!  But looking back, would do it over and over again!  A great experience!

 

[Juliecruzin]

Thanks for the tips and will definitely post on the family forum to get so advice. Will definitely be a very different cruise but will make lots of great memories. 

[Toddcan]

We sailed in August on Mariner with a few infants.  

 

Sterilizers are not available

Pack and Play units are provide  - they are small, but our grandkids were fine with them. You need to request them through special needs contact (I forget the email).  

[Another_Critic]

43 minutes ago, Toddcan said:

Pack and Play units are provide  - they are small, but our grandkids were fine with them. You need to request them through special needs contact (I forget the email).  

special_needs@rccl.com

[Juliecruzin]

Thanks will email to request. That’s us booked up so time to start planning. Thankfully we’re driving to the port so not limited with luggage 

[MommaBear55]

I'd think a room with the bed further away from the door would work better to accommodate the pack and play, maybe you could stick the stroller in the closet or fold it up and put it in the couch? 

[Juliecruzin]

On 11/24/2023 at 3:53 AM, MommaBear55 said:

I'd think a room with the bed further away from the door would work better to accommodate the pack and play, maybe you could stick the stroller in the closet or fold it up and put it in the couch? 

Thanks for the tip. We’ve gone for a guarantee cabin as was about half the price of pick your own but agree sounds the better layout so fingers crossed we get that one! 

[Sunshine3601]

I also wanted to mention that Anthem usually has kettles in each cabin (for tea).    This would probably would good for a sterilizer.   I would think the water would be hotter than shower or faucet water to clean baby bottles, etc.    If your cabin does not have a Kettle you may ask your room steward for one. 

[reallyitsmema]

15 hours ago, Juliecruzin said:

Thanks for the tip. We’ve gone for a guarantee cabin as was about half the price of pick your own but agree sounds the better layout so fingers crossed we get that one! 

 

Are you doing a balcony guarantee?  If you have booked a balcony on Anthem, the cabins that have sofabeds and sleep 3 or 4 people have the bed by the bathroom and the sofabed by the balcony.  Anthem cabins have two wardrobes instead of a closet, so you might be able to fit a stroller in the larger wardrobe but it will be tight.  You will have room by the sofabed for the pack and play.  It will just be a little tight trying to get by to the balcony.  You can move the chair for the vanity and that should give a little more room.  There are lots of videos to see the layouts.  Once you get your cabin assigned you will be able to see something online in the same category.

[kitkat343]

On 11/22/2023 at 12:49 PM, Juliecruzin said:

I’ve been on several cruises but never with a baby. We’re considering booking next year on anthem out of Southampton when our baby will be 7 months.

 

looking for any tips from anyone that has taken a similar aged baby on board.

 

what type of equipment will royal provide - I’ve seen mentions of a pack and play (how comfy is the mattress?), are they able to provide anything else  - ie sterilisers  etc? If not are you allowed to take your own steriliser on board?

 

how did you find meals on board? We’ll only be a month into weaning so unsure yet if we’ll manage baby led or not. Can the dining rooms do puréed/mashed food if necessary and are there any baby food jars/pouches available on board?

 

any other tips greatly appreciated, will likely be our first full holiday so all the great unknown 

Go to the buffet on the first day and get yogurt, cereal and fruit to bring back to the room so you always have snacks.  The MDR is usually easier to manage than the buffet, since they bring you the food and you don't have to carry everything and hunt for a table.  You can bring sealed cereal boxes off the ship (I think RC cereal is loose though) but absolutely no fruit.  If you are touring cities  (as opposed to just visiting a beach) and if you can afford private excursions for just your family, please do those because the ability to control your itinerary may make the difference between enjoying your tour and being miserable.  You can stop and feed your child if they ever seem overwhelmed or bored.  Our 3 year old son got a lot of cake and ice cream in St. Petersburg, but we got to see all of the major sites, including an hour at the Hermitage so it was worth it.  

Edited November 26, 2023 by kitkat343

[PigsCanFly]

We cruised with our 9mo old son 30 years ago on the Norway.  I remember carrying a bunch of stuff onboard. Lots of gerber jars, diapers, equipment for baby safety.  The one most useful addition , for DW & I, was we brought my MIL.  Our son and his Grandmother shared the same sleep schedule which allowed DW & I to enjoy evenings on the ship.  Now, 30 years later, our DS is D+ on RCL and 4* mariner on HAL.  Be forewarned. cruising can be addictive for any age.

[Juliecruzin]

19 hours ago, Sunshine3601 said:

I also wanted to mention that Anthem usually has kettles in each cabin (for tea).    This would probably would good for a sterilizer.   I would think the water would be hotter than shower or faucet water to clean baby bottles, etc.    If your cabin does not have a Kettle you may ask your room steward for one. 

I am hoping they’ll have one (I think they normally do from Southampton) I need it for making up formula as well as cleaning. At least I can hopefully ask the steward if there isn’t one.

 

18 hours ago, reallyitsmema said:

 

Are you doing a balcony guarantee?  If you have booked a balcony on Anthem, the cabins that have sofabeds and sleep 3 or 4 people have the bed by the bathroom and the sofabed by the balcony.  Anthem cabins have two wardrobes instead of a closet, so you might be able to fit a stroller in the larger wardrobe but it will be tight.  You will have room by the sofabed for the pack and play.  It will just be a little tight trying to get by to the balcony.  You can move the chair for the vanity and that should give a little more room.  There are lots of videos to see the layouts.  Once you get your cabin assigned you will be able to see something online in the same category.

yes it’s a balcony guarantee - I wasn’t sure if they definitely gave you a cabin for 3/4 with an infant as won’t use the sofa bed but hopefully as would give the best layout. Our most recent quantum class was on ovation but was pre covid and can’t remember the set up.

 

15 hours ago, kitkat343 said:

Go to the buffet on the first day and get yogurt, cereal and fruit to bring back to the room so you always have snacks.  The MDR is usually easier to manage than the buffet, since they bring you the food and you don't have to carry everything and hunt for a table.  You can bring sealed cereal boxes off the ship (I think RC cereal is loose though) but absolutely no fruit.  If you are touring cities  (as opposed to just visiting a beach) and if you can afford private excursions for just your family, please do those because the ability to control your itinerary may make the difference between enjoying your tour and being miserable.  You can stop and feed your child if they ever seem overwhelmed or bored.  Our 3 year old son got a lot of cake and ice cream in St. Petersburg, but we got to see all of the major sites, including an hour at the Hermitage so it was worth it.  

We’ve picked a Norway  cruise so docking directly into the towns to save having to worry about long distances to get to the sights (just need to accept we might not get the best weather!)
 

 

17 minutes ago, PigsCanFly said:

We cruised with our 9mo old son 30 years ago on the Norway.  I remember carrying a bunch of stuff onboard. Lots of gerber jars, diapers, equipment for baby safety.  The one most useful addition , for DW & I, was we brought my MIL.  Our son and his Grandmother shared the same sleep schedule which allowed DW & I to enjoy evenings on the ship.  Now, 30 years later, our DS is D+ on RCL and 4* mariner on HAL.  Be forewarned. cruising can be addictive for any age.

 

We were tempted to invite my parents but we also need a dog/cat sitter so guess we’ll need to rely on the nursery to get a few hours off. 
 

Thanks again to everyone for their help

[joeyancho]

14 minutes ago, Juliecruzin said:

I am hoping they’ll have one (I think they normally do from Southampton) I need it for making up formula as well as cleaning. At least I can hopefully ask the steward if there isn’t one.

 

yes it’s a balcony guarantee - I wasn’t sure if they definitely gave you a cabin for 3/4 with an infant as won’t use the sofa bed but hopefully as would give the best layout. Our most recent quantum class was on ovation but was pre covid and can’t remember the set up.

 

We’ve picked a Norway  cruise so docking directly into the towns to save having to worry about long distances to get to the sights (just need to accept we might not get the best weather!)
 

 

 

We were tempted to invite my parents but we also need a dog/cat sitter so guess we’ll need to rely on the nursery to get a few hours off. 
 

Thanks again to everyone for their help

They do a very nice job taking care of the little ones.  They will notify you if there any problems.